I would like to propose a new sub-forum - a knowledge repository of ideas and practices that we have found helpful in aiding our spiritual growth. Each new thread will start with someone posting something that has been helpful to them, and people can then respond with their comments. That way, we can all learn from each other, and collect that knowledge in one easy to reference place. What do you think?

Plenum, I'm glad you like the idea. I envisioned it as a place to share primarily spiritual tools and knowledge - e.g., meditation, healing or channeling techniques, insights, practices -- which would probably fit best under Olio. However, I'm happy to leave the location and name to the moderators' discretion.

(11-15-2014, 11:09 PM)Stranger Wrote: [ -> ]Plenum, I'm glad you like the idea. I envisioned it as a place to share primarily spiritual tools and knowledge - e.g., meditation, healing or channeling techniques, insights, practices -- which would probably fit best under Olio. However, I'm happy to leave the location and name to the moderators' discretion.

perhaps 'Practical Knowledge' as a name for the subforum? And slotting it in under Olio would be good too.

and thanks isis. That seems like a perfect fit for the kind of subforum that Stranger has suggested.

(11-16-2014, 07:29 AM)Bring4th_Plenum Wrote: [ -> ]perhaps 'Practical Knowledge' as a name for the subforum? And slotting it in under Olio would be good too.

and thanks isis. That seems like a perfect fit for the kind of subforum that Stranger has suggested.

"Practical Knowledge" sounds very good, Plenum.

I see it as a way to begin organizing the spiritual knowledge of the community. This would be helpful to all of us in discovering new ideas, but also to newcomers just discovering the Law of One or spirituality.

The peer validation/clarification process in the comments would also be valuable. Perhaps we could even have built-in voting in the original posts - "Have you also directly experienced this to be true or helpful?" with the choices "My own experience with this tells me this is true or helpful" "My own experience with this tells me this is not true or helpful" and "I have no direct experience with this".

This is similar to how science works - people who attempt X report their experiences in a systematic fashion, which allows mere beliefs or hypotheses to be differentiated from evidence-supported claims. Unfortunately at present science restricts itself to observing the material world, but there is no reason why this community of mystics with a very specialized skill set for interacting with reality can't do the same with its knowledge.

(11-16-2014, 08:41 AM)Stranger Wrote: [ -> ]The peer validation/clarification process in the comments would also be valuable. Perhaps we could even have built-in voting in the original posts - "Have you also directly experienced this to be true or helpful?" with the choices "My own experience with this tells me this is true or helpful" "My own experience with this tells me this is not true or helpful" and "I have no direct experience with this".

I'm not sure about the logistics/technical limitations in setting up such a system, but the option is always available to have a built in poll as part of any new thread one creates. My gut feeling is that it would probably be better to leave it to the discretion of the person starting the thread whether they wanted such a poll or not as part of their thread.

But I think the premise (of the poll) is sound.

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(11-16-2014, 08:41 AM)Stranger Wrote: [ -> ]This is similar to how science works - people who attempt X report their experiences in a systematic fashion, which allows mere beliefs or hypotheses to be differentiated from evidence-supported claims. Unfortunately at present science restricts itself to observing the material world, but there is no reason why this community of mystics with a very specialized skill set for interacting with reality can't do the same with its knowledge.

I guess the issue with metaphysics is that it tends to lie much more on the highly subjective plane, rather than the more common experience plane of physical objects. I seem to remember a Ra quote that said something along the lines of: (paraphrase) if an entity wasn't open to an experience, then it would not experience any sensations, even though something (energetically) was happening in one of it's chakras say.

But that doesn't mean that seekers can't offer their unique experience and carefully honed technique to others that are receptive to it. As you say, it's through peer-to-peer interaction that the fastest progress is usually made.

I would like to propose a new sub-forum - a knowledge repository of ideas and practices that we have found helpful in aiding our spiritual growth. Each new thread will start with someone posting something that has been helpful to them, and people can then respond with their comments. That way, we can all learn from each other, and collect that knowledge in one easy to reference place. What do you think?

Hi Stranger,

Thank you for the interesting idea, and thank you Plenum for highlighting this thread.

What started out as a handful of sub-forums has blossomed to a whopping seventeen sub-forums since Bring4th's launch almost six years ago on Christmas, 2008.

Each time we add a new sub-forum, I wonder if we're spreading the energies too thin over a landscape of too many categories. Yet at the same time I feel that, with each of the proposals that have moved through gestation and successfully birthed a new sub-forum, a category is defined that adds value and distinction.

As to this particular idea, like Plenum I feel it may be worthy of pursuing. However, I'm concerned that it may not be either:

a) distinct enough, or
b) (something that must always be kept in mind from an administrative point of view) if it is a category strong enough that it is practical and easy to determine what does and does not belong.

As to "a", the proposed forum would have overlap with two sub-forums in particular, Life on Planet Earth, and the Corkboard.

In the former already exists discussion centered on living and applying ones spiritual understanding. In the latter already exists discussion regarding recommending specific products/services (though not so much in the way of techniques).

And of course there is Olio which kind of overlaps with everything.

A question to you, Stranger, or any interested in this proposal: what precisely would be the criteria for a thread's inclusion in this sub-forum?

If such a thing were to be manifested, I think that "Applied Metaphysics" would be a clearer title. Like applied mathematics, it seems the gist of the idea is to focus not on pure metaphysics/spirituality in the abstract, but what it becomes as function when applied to different areas of life and its practical uses.

And like Plenum, I think that at maximum if there were to be a polling function, it would be to the discretion of the OP. If we even have that functionality in the forum's software.

GLB, I think you and Plenum are definitely in a better position than me to consider the forums as a whole and determine whether or not this subforum would be in fact a beneficial addition. I like the title "Applied Metaphysics" and I think it fits nicely, or perhaps "Applied Metaphysics Toolbox". I would define a thread as being appropriate for that subforum if it describes a particular applied method, technique or practice in a way that enables others to attempt it, and its consequences for spiritual growth or development. These should be based on the poster's own direct experience, or could be questions to other forum members ("has anyone tried such and such, and what has been your experience? e.g., "what do you think about chanting mantras - does that do anything?")

I believe there would be clear and practical advantage to having this information collected together in one place, as a collective knowledge repository.

I like the idea, it is a partly I think effective defense against the negative polarities view of spirituality which tends to only see things from one point of view. People don't go into enough of the deeper positive emotional experiences. You could put astrology things here.

Although I seriously take GLB's comment of spreading too little butter over too much bread. Especially since at the moment the forum is relatively quiet.

I did like the Law of One sessions in a sub forum though. That's quite powerful and will likely be important in the future.

If David Wilcocks ideas all came true (I suppose I've realised he is a bit of a taboo subject now) then you will need more than seventeen sub- forums. And moderators will become a full time job and probably paid. . (Which it probably is at the moment. Although the amount of moderating needing to be done would be increased.)

It's Sunday today, so I won't start a thread (I then feel I have to return to them). But I will start one soon on this since it is an interesting area. It may be based on my assumption but I will start a thread on the suspicion anyway, so everyone knows and can chat it over. I suspect it will be a conflict ridden discussion.